The civil aviation ministry has added certain riders in its approval in principle to the UP government?s proposed greenfield airport at Zevar, Greater Noida. The proposal is now expected to be taken up by the Cabinet for further discussions.
?The proposed airport in Greater Noida should follow the same service conditions which have been imposed on Delhi International Airport (DIAL),? a ministry official said. DIAL has been made to build its airport to International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) standards and also has to adhere to a point system for quantifying service standards as prescribed by ICAO.
As per OMDA (the operation, management and development agreement signed by the joint venture partners GMR and AAI), DIAL must maintain a performance standard of 3.75 at all times, covering 90% of passenger traffic through aerobridges, delivering baggage within three minutes etc.
But the ministry has no authority to define the amount of land that is earmarked for the airport that will go to the developer for commercial use, the official said. ?That is up to the UP government,? the source said.
This nod-with-riders assumes more significance with the Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) crying foul over the proposal for the Greater Noida airport to come up just 70 km away. DIAL had signed an agreement with the ministry that said ?no new airport would come up within 150 km and if one did then Dial is entitled to bid for the airport had the right of first refusal (in case the difference between the highest bidder and its own bid is within 10%).?
UP chief minister Mayawati had presented airport proposal to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during her first meeting with him after becoming CM. The proposal was sent to aviation minister Praful Patel after two months and Patel has forwarded it to the Cabinet in the shortest time ever, considering an airport proposal.
